On 14 October 2026, the Association for the Protection of Lake Geneva (ASL) is organising a screening and debate based on the documentary “Le Léman, une agonie surveillée”, in partnership with Les Bobines du Léman, at the Le France cinema in Thonon-les-Bains.
This 1979 documentary made for the programme Present tense marks the beginnings of investigative journalism. It will allow us to plunge back into a not-so-distant past when Lake Geneva was slowly dying of eutrophication. The cause? Phosphate pollution. The fascinating accounts of figures engaged in this battle will follow the screening. This debate will highlight the leading role of civil society and the scientific community in resolving this environmental crisis. What lessons can be learned from this past victory to better respond to the current threats weighing on Lake Geneva?
Free event, with the participation of:
- Eric Burnand, journalist who contributed to this documentary
- Raphaëlle Juge, co-founder of ASL and biologist
- Jean-Marcel Dorioz, Vice-President of the ASL and former Research Director at INRAE
- Olivier Goy, ASL committee member and former ASL employee
- Alain Gagnaire, creator of the French ASL group alongside Guy Barroin and Jean-Marcel Dorioz
- Evelyne Baptendier, hydrogéologue, autrice d’une thèse sur les transferts de phosphore du Redon au Léman en 1987
- Jean-Paul Lugrin, membre de l’association Lac pour tous et fils d’un pêcheur de l’époque
